40 Days

March 1, 2008 by Matt.

So through some recent experiences God has revealed to me that there are a number of things that are distracting me from connecting with Him. The first clue was when the power went out during worship a couple weeks ago, I blogged about it here. Anyways, then I went to the Small Group conference at Saddleback Church and became even more convicted. When we lost power, I thought that the barriers existed only in my worship. At the conference I realized that there are many other barriers that prevent me from connecting with God on a DAILY basis.

These are things as simple as the privacy fence that I never quite completed, or the three car garage that has no cars in it because of the mess. Some are more obvious such as television and the Internet. You probably understand the television and Internet thing pretty easy, but you may ask how the fence or the garage are distracting me from God. Well, if you have ever left something undone (which I am sure I am the only one to ever do that) then you know how this can nag on you. It is always there in the back of your mind. Well, for me at least, the thought of this unfinished project is taking up brain power, of which I have precious little to begin with. Therefore, the unfinished fence distracts me from God. The same thing with the garage. Every day I walk through that garage so there is a constant reminder of the mess that exists within the garage.

OK, so where am I going with all of this and what does 40 days have to do with it? Well, starting Monday I will be spending 40 days removing all of the things that distract me from connecting with God. Why 40 days? Well, 40 days is a significant time period in the bible. It rained on Noah and his ark for 40 day, Moses spent 40 days on the mount receiving the ten commandments, the children of Israel spent 40 days exploring the promised land, Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness fasting and being tempted of the devil, and Jesus spent 40 days with his disciples after his resurrection. These are just some of the examples of very significant things in the Bible that occured over a 40 day period.

So, starting Monday, March 3rd, 2008 I will be spending 40 days removing anything that is distracting me from connecting with God. This will included TV, Internet, and email. I don’t say all this to raise myself up, but rather to inform you my loyal reader. The one exception to the abstaining from the Internet will be my blog. I will probably be on here to express some of my feelings and to keep you all posted on how this adventure is going. I ask that you would pray for me during this time that God will give me the strength to keep going and that I may be filled with the Holy Spirit during this time.

Thanks, and I leave you with this. Are there anythings in your life that are distracting you from God? Any unfinished projects taking up precious brain power? Any nagging thoughts in the back of your mind that keep distracting you? Only you can answer this question. If the answer is yes, then perhaps you need to spend some time removing these distractions. Think about it…….

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